Book 2: Spirits
by Eye of the Hawk
Summary: A different look at what could happen in Book 2
1. Chapter 1

My first Korra fic so bear with me. Something that popped up and took a bit to actually write up.

Back to Work

Lin gritted her teeth as she faced an old foe, paperwork. The councilors were adamant on re-instating her as the Chief of Police when she, Tenzin, Korra, and the others returned to Republic City. Sadly, the position came with the backlog of paperwork that culminated during Saikhan's time as Chief. Saikhan, who returned to his position as her deputy, offered to help, but Lin initially embraced the thought of throwing herself back into her work. After a week of paperwork and very little actual policing, Lin was quickly regretting that decision.

A knock at her door came as a welcome interruption to the small tower of paperwork. "Come in," Lin said sitting back in her chair. Officer Song, who recently had his bending restored by Korra, opened the door, "Chief, Councilman Tenzin is on the phone for you."

'_What does Tenzin want now_,' Lin thought was she dismissed Song and grabbed the small phone on her table. "Tenzin, I am pretty busy right now. Can this wait until later," Lin said as she prepared to get back to work on her paperwork.

"Well, I have been waiting for about twenty minutes and lunch can't be put off until later," Tenzin stated in his ever calm voice. '_Crap, I forgot about lunch with Korra and Tenzin_,' Lin thought as she apologized to Tenzin and hung up the phone. Grabbing her coat, Lin rushed out of the station to and headed to City Hall.

Lin entered Tenzin's office nearly knocking into the young Avatar, "Sorry, I got distracted by paperwork and didn't realize the time." Korra's smug look made Lin want to hurl the waterbender out of the window, "Told you Beifong would forget our appointment because of work." Tenzin sent a scolding look at the Avatar which Lin followed up with a jab to Korra's arm. "We were thinking that we could go to Narook's since it is in walking distance," Tenzin said as he headed towards to door with Lin and Korra in tow.

An hour later, Narook's Seaweed Noodlery

"So, how is your airbending training going, Korra," Lin asked as she paid the bill.

"Fine," Korra muttered quickly.

"She still needs to practice," Tenzin stated holding the door open for Lin and Korra. Lin stifled a laugh, "So rumor has it that Aunt Katara and Kya are headed here to Republic City." Tenzin stroked his beard, "We were hoping to surprise you, but it seems that you have eyes and ears around the city again." Lin shook her head as they approached City Hall, "Tenzin, you of all people should know I hate-"

Lin was cut off as the earth began to shake violently. '_What is spirit's name is happening here_,' Lin thought as the facade of the Police station fractured sending the statue of Toph crumbling to the streets below. Several metalbenders ran up to Lin as she used her seismic sense to track the source of the earthquake. "Chief, we have reports that the Metalbending Academy is under attack," One of the officers shouted over the screams of civilians, who were searching for shelter from falling debris.

"Equalists," Korra asked praying that the Equalists hadn't obtained deadlier weapons since the defeat of Amon. Lin shook her head, "No, it feels like... it's an earthbender! Tenzin-"

"I am coming with you," Tenzin said pulling out the whistle used to summon the air bison. "Me, too," Korra said, "And before you say no, we need as many hands as possible if this earthbender is capable of taking on the Metalbending Academy."

"Fine," Lin said as Oogi landed in front of the trio. "Whoever this is, they're going to regret attacking the academy," Lin growled as Oogi took off towards the mountains that held the Beifong Metalbending Academy.

The sight of the once glorious building made Korra cringe. The Beifong crest that sat atop the doorway laid shattered on the ground. The doors themselves were flung in separate directions, one fell several trees while the other caused a giant hole in the roof. What was left standing slowly crumbled as several slabs of earth collided with the remaining walls.

Oogi hadn't even landed when Lin jumped off his back, heading for the source of the destruction. Tenzin and Korra followed suit running up to the first injured metalbender that they saw. The injured metalbender coughed up blood as more blood flowed freely from the numerous wounds on her chest. "These wounds... couldn't have been caused by an earthbender. A waterbender maybe or even-," Tenzin stopped himself. '_It can't be_,' he thought as he felt the air around him stir violently.

Lin sprinted past many of the fallen metalbenders, her angry bubbling the closer she got to the earthbender. Using her earthbending, Lin sent several boulders at the attacker, only to have them bended back at her. Lin evaded the boulders and bent her cables to fly at the bender. The cables froze in mid-flight as Lin got a clear view of the attacker, "Mother?"

AN: Well this is something that popped up when the rumors about Book 2 and the Spirits came out. I will try to update the next part tomorrow. Please review


	2. The Return

DISCLAIMER: Don't own anything related to the Legend of Korra. If I did it would be named the Legend of Lin.

Chapter 2: The Return

'_No. It can't be. She died_,' Lin thought as she dodged the barrage of rocks her mother was throwing at her. Toph Beifong was dressed in black pants and a black tunic with red trimmings, an outfit that Lin couldn't recall her mother wearing when she was alive. Based on her looks, Lin assumed that her mother was in her forties. None of the scars that she received during her time as Chief were visible. "Who are you," Lin shouted as she threw boulders at the familiar looking woman.

"Poor Linny," Toph said throwing up a barrier to block the oncoming attack, "If you know it's me then why are you asking." Lin prepared to fire her cables but was stopped when she was hit in the back by a boulder. "You can't be her," Lin struggled to stand and catch her breath, "I...I held your hand when you died." Making it to her feet, Lin kicked a boulder at her mother. Before impact the boulder was turned into dirt, "Well, kid, believe it or not, I am right here."

Toph continued her assault on her daughter sending boulder after boulder at her. Lin bent the metal on her arms into blades cutting the boulders in half. "Why? Why do this," Lin shouted shooting bits of her cables at Toph, who stopped them in mid-air again. The former Chief chuckled, "To test my legacy. To test you, little badgemole. And from what I've seen, I think that it is time I find someone else to carry on the Beifong name." Lin felt nothing but rage as the words picked at her heart.

Lin propelled herself in the air with the help of her bending prepared to attack her mother head-on. "Good, I was hoping that you finally outright attack me," Toph gloated. Lin landed and attacked her mother with the blades from her armor. Before Lin's blades could hit home Toph bent two rocks shaped as swords, parrying the attack with one and attacking with the other. Lin barely suppressed a cry of agony as the sword managed to cut through the armor on her abdomen. Lin wrapped an arm around the wound and jumped back to avoid the next swing of the swords.

Her next attempt to dodge the swords failed when she felt her armor lock up. "Linny, did you forget that I was the best metal and earthbender," Toph scoffed watching her daughter struggle against her locked up armor. The inability to move in her armor caused Lin's mind to flash back to the days after Amon took her bending. She was broken out of her own personal nightmare as her arms and legs were encased in rocks. The pressure from the rocks prevented Lin from any attempts at bending.  
With her daughter effectively subdued, Toph bend the armor off her daughter's torso. Lin began to struggle again as she regained a minimal amount of mobility, but her efforts were rewarded with a blow to the chest with a rock. Black spots appeared in her vision as Lin coughed a glob of blood up, '_Tenzin, Korra, please hurry up and get over here. Kinda getting hard to breathe._'

As the spots cleared from her vision she watched her mother appear in front of her, rock swords replaced with metal ones, "You asked me why I would do this. There is another reason. They're testing the Avatar."

"Who," Lin gritted out.

"The Dark Spirits," Toph explained before stabbing her daughter in the abdomen with both of her swords. Lin embraced the darkness as the pain became unbearable.

***Legend of Korra***

"Korra, look out," Tenzin shouted as he sent a gust of air to move the Avatar out of the way. "Tenzin, what the h-" Korra was cut off with a fireball hitting the space she had just occupied. Dirt swirled in the air as the attacker approached.

"Aang?"

"Dad?"

His attire differed from his traditional Air Nomad grab, his pants and cloak were a dark shade of red while his tunic was black. The former Avatar sent several gusts of wind at his son and successor. Korra bent a barrier of earth to block the attack. "How is this possible, Tenzin," Korra asked as she sent a fireball at her predecessor.

"I don't know," Tenzin said dodging a rock sent by his father, "How could you turn your back on the ways of the Air Nomads? You used your airbending to kill some of these officers."

"You were always too serious, Tenzin," Aang glared at his son. Before Tenzin could react he was trapped in a cone of rocks, preventing him from moving. "Now, time to see the Avatar in action," Aang said as he encased himself and Korra in a rock dome.

"KORRA," Tenzin shouted as the rocks that were immobilizing him fell to the ground. 'She isn't ready to take him on,' he thought pounding his fists into the dome. Bending the air to make a drill, Tenzin attempted to break through the rock. As the rock began to crack Tenzin felt a blinding pain pierce his back. Tenzin looked down and was shocked to see a bloodstained sword sticking out of his chest. He collapsed into the dome as the attacker pulled the sword out. Sitting with his back to the dome and his hands on his wound he looked up at his attacker.

"Uncle Sokka," he wheezed out before passing out.

***Legend of Korra***

"Why are you doing this," Korra shouted as she used her firebending to light up the enclosed space. She grunted in pain when she was knocked back by a gust of air, extinguishing the flame she was using as a torch. "It seems that Lin didn't teach you to use seismic sense. It seems that both of you turned out to be disappointments," Korra couldn't pinpoint the location of the voice. "Shut up," Korra fired several fireballs, hoping that one could help her locate the former Avatar. "If I am such a disappointment why don't you show yourself and I can fix that," Korra growled using her earthbending to break open a section of the dome.

A hard blow to her kidneys sent her to her knees. She cried out when a chunk of rock thudded against her ribs. "It's time, Twinkle Toes," Korra could hear a far away voice say as she fought to catch her breath. "Goodbye, Korra," Aang said before he kicked Korra in the temple knocking her out.

AN: Don't hate me. I was hoping to get this out last night, but I couldn't decide where to end the chapter or if I wanted to put a flashback at the beginning. Please review.


End file.
